Help - DVD fails to burn on new laptop - using NEC 2500A

Hi,
I just got a new laptop - Toshiba Satellite 2.8 Ghz and have an external DVD writer - NEC 2500A. I have been trying since yesterday, unsuccessfully, to burn movies using the new laptop. The NEC just becomes unresponsive - almost like shutting down and then I have to unplug the USB and plug it back in for it to work again. There is no problem with watching movies, decrypting or transferring them to the hard drive with the NEC - just that it fails to burn (at some random point) using Nero/CopytoDVD...
However it did burn a DVD-5 when I put it in the DVD-Rom drive of the laptop and the DVD-R in the burner, which baffles me. I have tried updating my Windows and NEC to the latest firmware update. The NEC works fine on my slow ass PC...

I use Dvd Decrypter and then DVD Shrink before using NERO to burn or Copy to DVD. The simulaton ran fine (I didn't want to waste more dvd-r) - the burning didn't so it tricked me. Help me - I don' know what else could be the problem...

However it did burn a DVD-5 when I put it in the DVD-Rom drive of the laptop and the DVD-R in the burner

Click to expand...

That is why I asked if you tried with a dvd-9. Put the source in your laptop dvd rom and a blank in your burner ... see if you can successfully backup. If you can it's not the software, it's your hardware. You just can't rip and burn with your NEC burner.

Ok - Let me try that. I meant that I can't do a DVD-9 using NERO since it wont compress onto a DVD-5. I didn't know I could use my DVD-ROM to rip, but that makes sense. My NEC works perfectly on my PC...I was thinking it has to be the hardware n m Toshiba Laptop...but still don't know what it could be...Anyway...let me try this and I'll post an update...Thx

Well you could try ripping from your NEC. Just don't do the whole process of Shrink from your NEC. ie. Rip the disc first with Decrypter from your NEC. Then use Shrink to open the file from your HD, then burn.

No luck.
I encoded using Shrink after deep analysis and everything....and burning stopped at 9% with the Nero internal burn engine, which was prob. just random. I don't know what to do...I have probably wasted about 8 DVD-R's in the past 3 days trying to figure this out...

Yes - I ripped using my DVDRom with Decrypter before using DVD Shrink to encode and then it auto-burned through Shrink using NERO. Then I see the lights go off on my NEC at 9% and I actually have to pull the USB out on the NEC and use Ctrl+Alt_Delete to shut down DVD Shrink.
I'll try to burn from NERO directly with the VIDEO_TS folder...
Laptop Specs: Toshiba Satellite 2.8 GHZ A65-S126
60.0 GB HD. Intel Celeron Processor. Usable Memory:192 MB RAM...anything specific?
One weird thing -It burns CD's with no problem with the NEC...I burned about 5 yesterday with no problems at all...Just the DVD from the HD is giving me problems.

isn't that virtual memory that can be increased? My paging file is set at 500 MB...I know that the RAM on my PC is way less and it always burned wthout crashing.
Anyway - I uninstalled NERO and used CloneDVD to make an ISOFile before burning and unplugged everything from the laptop apart from the power source and NEC USB and it burned! So now I have virtually no clue as to what the problem is/was...but I am a bit happier...

alright i got things working. discovered that if i unplug all the other ext. peripherals and just have the ac adapter and nec plugged in - there is no problem. I have been using Clone DVD and the past 3 burns were great...Thx for all your help. I really appreciate it.